Smoke from ground wreckage

[karel2501]

I know this has been brought up several times in the past, but none of the threads seemed to lead anywhere:

 

The game desperately needs at least an option to enable long-lasting smoke from ground wreckage - such destroyed cars, artillery positions, buildings etc... 

Is there any real reason why this is not at least a customizable or modable option?

 

Lack of smoke and fire on debris is not only a cosmetic, visual feature. Aside from being hugely immersion-breaking in a game with otherwise such a stellar visual features and realistic presentation (it feels almost absurd when after a massive air-raid on an enemy supply post, involving destruction of multiple ammo stashes, fueling cars, vehicles etc... looks basically identical AFTER the raid to what it looked before), but it also is a major gameplay feature. Smoke colums are vital for immediate orientation among the ground targets, as well as serve as an identification of which targets have been taken out and which have not. I find myself in an absurd situation of having to take multiple passes over say line of enemy artillery trying to determine which ones were killed and which are still operational (after dousing a PAK full of ammo with an HE shower, that should never be the case).

I realise that there are issues with performance related to this, but again: this could be easily adjustable in the settings of the game - allowing player to enable long-lasting plumes or even set the timer for them based on how much peformance impact it has on their individual hardware.

Or, at the very least - make this at least a modable option. There does not seem to me any logical reason why smoke duration from destroyed objects is locked away for modders - it's not something that could in any way affect Il-2's business plan, and feels like a completely needless limitation of something that should be a major part of a realistic combat sim. There are people in the modding section of the forums offering rewards of 50 bucks to anyone who can figure out how to do it, there is a major demand for this. And I does not seem like something that should be technically difficult to implement - at least on a level where modders can adjust it. 

 

It feel like something that should have a high priority, as it affects both gameplay, and the simple experience of the battlefield on just about every level - and at least giving the community option to introduce/customize it feels like it would be a major step forward for the player base, at relatively little necessary investment from the dev team.

 

If there is some factor that explains this odd omission, please let me know. Othewise, it would be great to know if this is something that is at least under investigation or consideration.

 

With best regards,

Karel2501

[[-=BP=-]Slegawsky_VR]

Fires are missing, they dissapear as soon as a invisible fire brigade arrives a second after explosion. Dcs is shite but theirs ww2 assets provide excellent firework show to behold with awe.

 

[karel2501]

I honestly don't expect or ask for extensive fireworks - as while neat, those would also be a significant resource hog (both on performance side and developer time), they could be argued as low priority. 

But basic extension of the system that is in place, if nothing else then leaving the smoke stay on for customizable duration (say, 5-20 minutes. depending on how much they affect performance and how much machine power you can personally spare) should not be unrealistic or overly demanding, and thus more realistic expectations. I don't know that much about modding, but from what I gathered from the discussion, there is already a set of values that define these properties in the game. They are just - for some reason - locked and unmodable, which makes really no sense to me. Unlike say, modding properties of an airplane which logically contradicts the philosophy of selling new planes to sustain prolonged development, adjusting the existing damage indicators should really not interfere with the business model. 

 

In a long run, I would of course love to see the visual damage evolve even more, but I understand that there are other priorities on the devs. mind, and that they also have to consider the average user hardware limitations. Making fire/smoke plume lasts really should be an option - either through the game's option menu, or by being enabled through mods. I know for a fact that there is a small army of modders desperately waiting or this options, ready to go and have a field day with it. 

[Startrek66]

I too have noticed this lack and I approve the request.  It certainly should be a menu selectable option, so as not to affect CPU performance.  It would be very convenient as an alternative to smoking to have the possibility to change the color of the ground in the area around the vehicles or structures that have exploded, as if to simulate the scorched earth.